Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Computational modeling and stability analysis of BOLT hypersonic geometry including off-nominal conditions

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Theoretical and Computational Fluid Dynamics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

With an interest in developing and studying the stability of laminar undisturbed basic-state solutions, this work is focused on accurately modeling the laminar flowfield of the boundary layer transition (BOLT) geometry under nominal and off-nominal conditions (i.e., nonzero angles of pitch and yaw). The BOLT flowfield is studied using the DPLR flow solver with MUSCL Steger–Warming fluxes using a set of five grids at different resolutions and identical grid topologies. A total of three different sets of conditions are studied: two flight conditions and one wind-tunnel-scale (33%) condition. (1) For the two sets of nominal flight operating conditions, it is found that the flow structures in the centerline region of BOLT are similar to those found in prior studies including in shape, location, and extent both vertically and spanwise, but a detailed comparison of velocity contours shows that further quantitative convergence studies are warranted. The centerline region, however, extends to at most 4 cm in semi-span at the aft end of the geometry (20% of the semi-span). Away from the centerline and where wind-tunnel-scale results have observed regions of possibly transitional behavior, the laminar flowfield converges with high accuracy. (2) For nominal wind-tunnel operating conditions, all grid resolutions simulated show good agreement in most regions as compared with prior results, with any differences falling within the scatter of existing experimental and DNS results. Aside from this focus, boundary-layer stability is examined outboard of the centerline region at nonzero pitch and yaw for a flight case, and second mode and stationary crossflow instabilities are considered. Second-mode instability is found to be locally significant at certain pitch and yaw angles particularly downstream of the swept leading edges. In addition, stationary crossflow is found to become highly amplified in significant wedges extending to the aft end of the BOLT geometry, with N-factors consistent with those found for HIFiRE-5b associated with transitional flow. The reasons for amplification of these different instabilities are also investigated from a physics-based perspective.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12
Fig. 13
Fig. 14
Fig. 15
Fig. 16
Fig. 17
Fig. 18
Fig. 19
Fig. 20
Fig. 21

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Leyva, I.A., Cummings, R.M.: Introduction to the special section on the boundary layer transition (BOLT) flight experiment. J. Spacecr. Rockets 58(1), 4–5 (2021). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34872

  2. Wheaton, B.M., Berridge, D.C., Wolf, T.D., Araya, D.B., Stevens, R.T., McGrath, B.E., Kemp, B.L., Adamczak, D.W.: Final design of the boundary layer transition (BOLT) flight experiment. J. Spacecr. Rockets 58(1), 6–17 (2021). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34809

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. McKiernan, G.R., Chynoweth, B.C., Schneider, S.P., Berridge, D.C., Wheaton, B.M.: Boundary layer transition preflight experiments in a Mach-6 quiet tunnel. J. Spacecr. Rockets 58(1), 54–66 (2021). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34772

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Kostak, H.E., Bowersox, R.D.W.: Preflight ground test analyses of the boundary layer transition (BOLT) flight geometry. J. Spacecr. Rockets 58(1), 67–77 (2021). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34858

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Thome, J., Dwivedi, A., Nichols, J.W., Candler, G.V.: Direct numerical simulation of BOLT hypersonic flight vehicle. AIAA (2018). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2018-2894

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Knutson, A.L., Thome, J.S., Candler, G.V.: Numerical simulation of instabilities in the boundary-layer transition experiment flowfield. J. Spacecr. Rockets 58(1), 90–99 (2021). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34599

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Cook, D.A., Thome, J., Nichols, J.W., Candler, G.V.: Receptivity analysis of BOLT to distributed surface roughness using input-output analysis. AIAA (2019). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2019-0089

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Moyes, A.J., Reed, H.L.: Preflight boundary-layer stability analysis of BOLT geometry. J. Spacecr. Rockets 58(1), 78–89 (2021). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34792

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Mullen, C.D., Moyes, A., Kocian, T.S., Reed, H.L.: Heat transfer and boundary-layer stability analysis of subscale BOLT and the fin cone. AIAA (2019). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2019-30819-3081

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Li, F., Choudhari, M.M., Paredes, P.: Streak instability analysis on BOLT configuration. AIAA (2020). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-3028

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Mullen, C.D., Reed, H.L.: Linear parabolized stability analysis of the BOLT flight geometry at off-nominal conditions. AIAA (2020). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-3027

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Wright, M.J., Candler, G.V., Bose, D.: Data-parallel line relaxation method for the Navier–Stokes equations. AIAA J. 36(9), 1603–1609 (1998). https://doi.org/10.2514/2.586

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Moyes, A.J., Kocian, T.S., Mullen, D., Reed, H.L.: Boundary-layer stability analysis of HIFiRE-5b flight geometry. J. Spacecr. Rockets 55(6), 1341–1355 (2018). https://doi.org/10.2514/1.A34146

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Kocian, T.: Computational hypersonic boundary-layer stability and the validation and verification of EPIC. Ph.D. thesis, Texas A&M University (2018)

  15. Oliviero, N.B., Kocian, T.S., Moyes, A., Reed, H.L.: EPIC: NPSE analysis of hypersonic crossflow instability on yawed straight circular cone. AIAA (2015). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2015-2772

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Moyes, A., Beyak, E., Kocian, T.S., Reed, H.L.: Accurate and efficient modeling of boundary-layer instabilities. AIAA (2019). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2019-1907

  17. Li, F., Choudhari, M., Chang, C.L., Kimmel, R., Adamczak, D., Smith, M.: Transition analysis for the HIFiRE-1 flight experiment. AIAA (2011). https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2011-3414

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Mack, L.: Boundary-layer linear stability theory. AGARD Report 709: Special Course on Stability and Transition of Laminar Flow. VKI, Brussels (1984)

  19. Zurigat, Y.H., Nayfeh, A.H., Masad, J.A.: Effect of pressure gradient on the stability of compressible boundary layers. AIAA J. 30(9), 2204–2211 (1992). https://doi.org/10.2514/3.11206

    Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The computational work on the BOLT and BOLT-II geometries is supported by AFRL/AFOSR under grant numbers FA9550-18-1-0010 and FA9550-19-1-0154, respectively, with program officers Drs. Ivett Leyva and Sarah Popkin. The authors are grateful to Pointwise and NASA for providing the Pointwise meshing program and the DPLR CFD code, respectively. The authors also acknowledge the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) at The University of Texas at Austin for providing high performance computing (HPC) and storage resources that have contributed to the research results reported within this paper. In addition, portions of this research were conducted with the advanced computing resources provided by Texas A&M High Performance Research Computing.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77845, USA

    C. Daniel Mullen & Helen L. Reed

Authors
  1. C. Daniel Mullen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Helen L. Reed
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to C. Daniel Mullen or Helen L. Reed.

Additional information

Communicated by Pino Martin.

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Mullen, C.D., Reed, H.L. Computational modeling and stability analysis of BOLT hypersonic geometry including off-nominal conditions. Theor. Comput. Fluid Dyn. 36, 251–276 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00162-021-00583-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00162-021-00583-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation